RINGLE - A new mountain bike trail system that twists through the property of the Marathon County landfill is now open, and will soon become another winter cycling option for central Wisconsin.

The trail network is the culmination of years of planning, development and physical work on the part of the Central Wisconsin Offroad Cycling Coalition, a nonprofit group that aims to make the region a better and more diverse mountain bike destination.

The Ringle trail system currently offers about four miles of single-track trail through the rolling and boulder-strewn terrain on the property of the Marathon County Solid Waste Department Landfill and Hazardous Waste Facility. The trails are not near the landfill itself, but take advantage of the adjacent acres of open and undeveloped county-owned land. CWOCC will continue to develop and build trails in the area.

"We're only about halfway to the total that will be in place when it's all complete," said Matt Block, a CWOCC member and leader.

The Ringle trail system has several features for advanced mountain bike riders, including drops and jumps.(Photo: Keith Uhlig/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin)

Most of the Ringle singletrack is geared for a beginner or average rider, the kind that gives riders a kind of "flowy" experience without a lot of ruts, roots or other technical riding difficulties. But there are optional trails offering challenges to highly skilled cyclists with ramps, jumps and drop-offs.

Once enough snow falls, CWOCC volunteers will groom the trails for winter single-track riding. It will be another central Wisconsin riding options for lovers of fat bikes, the wide-tired mountain bikes designed to float across snow and other kinds of soft terrain.

Mountain bikes with regular-width tires won't be allowed on the groomed winter trails because the narrower wheels rut up and ruin the grooming efforts.

Ringle is one more option for fat-bike riding, adding to several trail systems in the region designed specifically for fat bikes, including trails at Big Eau Pleine County Park south of Mosinee, Prairie Dells and Underdown Recreation Area in Lincoln County and Levis Mounds south of Neillsville in Clark County.

In past years, CWOCC has groomed trails at Sunny Vale Park on Wausau's west side and at Greenwood Hills Country Club on Wausau's east side. Sunny Vale was prone to flooding and Greenwood Hills has rocky ground that tended to wreak havoc on grooming equipment, Block said.

To access the Ringle trails, cyclists can turn into the main driveway to the county landfill site at 172900 State 29, about 12 miles east of Wausau. There is a parking lot and shelter on the east side of the driveway, which also has access to Mountain-Bay State Trail. Entrance to the trails is on the west side of the landfill driveway. Look for an opening in the fence, and a gravel path that leads to the trails that wind through the woods. Cyclists cannot use the landfill roadways, paved or unpaved.